25 Nights for the Spirit of Winter RATED T
by roseyourmary
Summary: The story of how Jack and Hiccup fell in love in 25 days. ((Chapter 2 posted! -minutes within deadline-))
1. Before the Ceremonies

**First thing's first:**

**There are two versions of this story. There is the ****rated T version**** and the ****rated M version****. I have done this because I know there are individuals that only like reading the **_**weenie hut jr. **_** side to boy-on-boy stories. But I also know people that like reading the **_**salty spittoon**_** side to boy-on-boy stories (If you catch my drift). Both versions are exactly the same except that, obviously, the ****rated T version will not have any sex. **** Simple as that. (Though the ratings won't really matter the first couple of chapters).**

**Second thing's second: **

**In this story, Jack is a human. Got that? HUMAN. Not a winter sprite. That means he is a warm-blooded, brown-haired, brown-eyed, living creature. I have included him in Hiccup's tribe along with his mother and little sister. I might make him a guardian, not within the 25 days of ceremony of course, but after. MAYBE.**

**Third thing's third:**

**I really appreciate any advice that might help improve this story. Good reviews keep me motivated. And useless flames? Haters to the left. You shall be completely ignored.**

**Last note I hope you read before starting: **

**The first chapter's sort of tedious (Maybe, it depends on the person), but I strongly urge you to read it from beginning to end. I just don't want any details skipped and people to be confused later on in the story. There's a pleasant surprise waiting for you to read somewhere.**

**Oh yeah, and why does everyone write disclaimers? FanFiction protects you from law cases like those doesn't it? I don't know, I just can't imagine DreamWorks and Disney/Pixar coming in here and suing everyone who doesn't have a disclaimer. So ehh. Who cares. No disclaimer. **

**Well actually, the only disclaimer I have is for the cover picture. If you want to see more pictures like the cover photo, go to **"ask _insert dash here_ jackandhiccup _insert a dot here _tumblr _insert another dot here_ com"

**Before the Ceremonies**

I avert my attention from my notebook to the sudden touch of ice in my head.

"Jack!" I whine as I rub the remnants of a snowball off my hair, "December just began and you're already starting this?" The snow falls on the wooden floor, showing melting away to the unbalance of temperature.

He sneaks a peak at me above my own window pane, as if I can't already see him. He never ceases to amaze me with his climbing skills. How the hell does get up here? It's the second floor for crying out loud! And the tree just outside my room is too slippery to climb! When our eyes meet, he flamboyantly shoots up and plays dumb, "Hey there Hiccup! I didn't see you there! How's it going? Is that snow on the ground?"

In disbelief I glare at him, "Oh really? You didn't see me in my own room? I would get my eyes checked out if I were you."

He chuckles and jumps into my room through the frame, "You know, I like how you

don't even have to think twice anymore."

"Who else would throw snowballs at me?" I rhetorically ask, "besides, you've done this every year for 5 years straight."

"True, and i'm wonderful at it," he grins in pride as he strolls over to my side, "but I don't know Hiccup, that Astrid girl is..." he abruptly slams his hand onto my desk and nears his face to mine, "pretty violent."

I pout and push aside his face, "Oh please, as if she would be able to climb up my window," I huff out as I pick up my pencil and get back to my notebook, "And quit being judgmental. She's just fine the way she is alright?"

"Really?," by the sound of his voice I can practically hear him smirk, "Well, I think someone just likes being the girl in the relationship."

"We're not even in a relationship.." I mumble out.

"Oh, wait, friends with benefits right?" he presumes, "because Astrid is too busy flirting around with more attractive, buff guys," I feel his hands cup my shoulders, "than to be committed with my best friend of a noodle here." he teases with a saccharine mocking voice as he rocks me side to side.

Damn Jack. "Ever heard of keeping your mouth shut if you've got nothing good to say?" I chide him, maintaining my composure as I do.

"Listen, i'm sorry," he rubs my hair, "but seriously bud, I don't think Astrid is your type exactly."

I drop my pencil and face him, "and why not?" I defend myself aggressively.

Startled at my sudden reaction, he steps back and mutters, "well, I don't know" gesturing mock ignorance with his arms, "It's just..." he pauses himself in apprehension.

"What?" I prompt him, "It's just what?"

He sighs in what I sense is frustration, "Hiccup, in case you haven't noticed, Astrid didn't even pay a spark of attention to you until after you took her flying with Toothless. She's practically using you whenever she'd like. I mean, what the hell!" he complains as he flings his arms in the air, "But since you're all head-over-heels for her, you don't even notice!"

I scowl at him. I'm not an idiot, really i'm not. I did notice it from the start, that Astrid wasn't even aware of my existence until just last year when she realized I was becoming a better "dragon slayer" than her. But I saw it more as an opportunity to be with the girl I liked than being used. She caught me by surprise when she started randomly throwing smooches in my face. And my dad thinks she's the perfect girl for a chief's son. We're bound to be together someday in the future right?

And what does Jack know? Astrid and him have only had scarce conversations here and there throughout the year, mainly only a simple greeting. He's never actually met her and pretty much judging her by the book cover.

Heck, he doesn't know anything about us! If Astrid and I are willing to wait to actually be committed to each other, then so be it! I don't think i'm ready for a relationship anyway. But if she wants to throw smooches around, it's not like i'm gonna stop her, I mean come on!

And despite all my thoughts, I calmly relax once more, turn around, pick up my pencil, and get back to drawing, "I'm too busy to talk about this."

Surprisingly, he doesn't say anything (because normally he'd nag and tease even more) and I hear a sigh and the creaking of wood on my bed.

He must be tired though, because yesterday he and his family built a bonfire at the center of the village, which by the way takes about half a day to set up considering it's so big. I'm surprised he hasn't knocked it down in all these years he's helped, he's always getting into trouble after all.

His family builds it every year one day before the first of December to keep us warm. Because, you see, every night starting from today all the way up 'till Christmas the tribe celebrates the arrival of the winter spirit. We dance, play games, sing, tell stories, all that kind of stuff. At the end of the day, we gather around the fire and roast fish-on-a-stick to eat. I'm in charge of designing the new boats for the fishermen, I'm creating them as we speak. They are actually not readily built until the 15th of December for some reason, so the old boats are used in the meantime. I'm just giving myself a headstart at my tasks this year.

Why don't we do this kind of celebration for every other season? I don't know. The winter spirit welcoming is just tradition for us.

Personally, I don't believe in any spirits or mystical creatures or magic, etc. This is pretty ironic for a boy with a dragon. But dragons are full-proof real. Show me an actual winter spirit and then maybe i'll believe it. In the meantime, I just follow through with the ceremony to not be rude.

Jack seems to like this time of the year though. Well, no, actually he loves December and winter itself. It could be because of the lively everynight parties, or it could be simply because he likes throwing snowballs in my face. I think both. Not to mention all the games he plays with the kids. Oh, speaking of kids...

"Where's Emma?" I finally ask Jack after some time, still drawing.

He quickly picks his head up from my pillow, "playing with her friends," and drops his head back into the fluffy puff.

"Why don't you go play with them? The kids love you anyway." I suggest. It's not like I want him to leave or anything, because I don't, but I worry about his little sister sometimes.

He muffles something through my pillow I can't comprehend, so I disregard him and keep talking, "Her friends have some crazy ideas sometimes, you know. And some crazy games too. I just don't want her to get hurt. I mean, you have some crazy moments of your own, but last time they were throwing rocks at Astrid's sleeping dragon, and that didn't end too well." Somehow I feel Jack is more cautious than Emma's friends, which sounds ridiculous but honestly I think it's true.

I hear him turn over, "Ughh," he groans, "you're right." His feet touch the floor and he steps over to the window frame, "speaking of dragons, where's Toothless?"

I stop drawing and look over at him, "I don't know," I admit, concern whooshing through me again like this morning, "I woke up today and he was gone."

"Hmm," he creases his eyebrows, presumably noting the worry in my voice, "strange...Do you want me to look for him? I can take Aquilone." he offers as he sets his legs through the window.

"No," I shake my head and continue working on the boats, "just go take care of Emma. Thanks though."

He smiles, "I'll let you know if I see him around," and hops through the window to a nearby tree and slides down, a routine i've known he follows from all the years we've known each other.

Secretly, I just don't think he's ready to fly with Aquilone, his Devilish Dervish dragon. He just found him a couple of days ago not too far from Berk Lake in the woods, but I think he needs to get closer with him. Jack is up and ready to fly, considering its his first dragon, but Aquilone just isn't. I feel it.

Aquilone means kite in Italian, or at least I think it does. Jack said his dragon reminded him of those giant Chinese dragon kites he's read about in books, being mainly blue and red in color. But he didn't want to name Aquilone "Kite", because it sounded too simple. He wanted something fancier. He was going to call him kite in Chinese, but "Feng Zheng" was incredibly bizarre.

Then I had started telling him a storytale that has been passed down for centuries in my family about how our ancestors in Italy invented objects that needed wind to function, like sails, paper planes, and kites. Now, whether it's true or not, I don't know. Frankly, I didn't believe it because it seems just plain weird that we went from being kite inventors to dragon trainers but why spoil the fun of the story?

And so he had asked me, "How do you say kite in Italian?"

I couldn't remember it well at first. In my head I began to try and stutter it back to memory.

Aqu- Aquia- Aquil- Aquine- Aquint- Aqua- Aquarius? I just couldn't seem to jog it back.

So I made it up, "Aquilone." I had told him with a fake smile. And if it's actually correct, then i'm a miracle guesser.

As for the story with Jack and I, we've been best friends since I can remember. He's always been there for me and vice-versa. We know each other favorites, each other's dislikes, each other's lives, and I know all the tricks up his sleeve. He's a real trouble maker and a great prankster. At heart he's still a child even though he's 17, just a year older than I am.

He lost his father 7 years ago to a dragon attack, obviously dragon training didn't exist then. He cares a lot for his mother and his little sister Emma. Despite causing trouble, he's actually very responsible and maintains his family all by himself.

And well, what else can I say? Jack is Jack. Overall, he's a really great best friend.

At this time, I have finished my designs and I stand, careful of my prosthetic foot, and walk off to tell my dad.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

I find him at the village center, ordering vikings to do this and that. Basically decorating for the first night. I walk straight towards him and he catches a glance at me.

"Hiccup! My boy! What've you got to tell me?" he asks me full of joy. The ceremonies of December always make him this happy.

I hand over my drawings to him, he examines them as I speak, "I finished the designs early this year. I hope it's not a problem."

He chuckles loudly, "Nonsense Hiccup! The earlier the better! I'll get the men to building it right away!"

"Alright dad, see ya later then." I wave as I begin walking towards Jack's house.

He doesn't even catch my dismissal though, as he's too busy calling his men over to show them the designs. The last thing I hear from the group is an "Ohhhhhhh" out of astonishment for my drawings. I lightly giggle before I have them out of hearing range.

Nearing Jack's house, I realize I hear Emma sobbing inside. I fast-walk to the door and knock lightly, not wanting to interrupt anything that might be going on.

Jack's mom opens the door, "Oh, Hiccup," she greets me, pleasantly surprised.

"Hi Mrs. Palenstine," I warmly greet back.

"Oh well please, come in," she gestures towards inside the house.

"Thank you," I step inside. The first thing I see is Jack in the kitchen applying a damp towel on Emma's knee while she sits.

"What happen to Emma?" I ask, getting closer to them both.

"H-Hiccup," she mutters through tears, "it hurts." I go to her side and carefully hug her head against my abdomen, she clutches my shirt in return, continuing to sob.

"She scraped her knee a little, that's all." Jack's mom tells me, "She'll be fine, so there's nothing to worry about." she reassures me.

"I see," I respond looking down at Emma, "how'd she scratch it?"

"She was playing hide-and-go-seek through the woods with her friends. One of them hid in a cave and scared her, so she tripped running her way out." Jack explained to me while grabbing a bandage roll from a brown bag beside him.

"Emma, who scared you?" I ask her gently, "do you remember?"

She shakes her head as she sucks mucus in through her nose.

"I think it might've been Robert," Jack suggests has he wraps the bandage around Emma's knee, "he's the one that's into all the horror stories. He's bound to hide in a cave and scare the rest of the group."

I nod my head at his every word, "You've got a point," I agree.

"I think it was Robert too," Emma mumbles, capturing Jack's logic.

Jack finishes wrapping the bandage and secures it with a little latch-on clip, "Then i'll tell you what," he looks up at Emma with a reassuring smile, "tomorrow morning we'll pull a prank of our own on Robert."

Emma claps her hands, "Yeah!" immediately transitioning from hurt to jolly.

I crouch on my knees to her level, "I'll help too," I offer, and she grins wider than before.

Jack grabs her shoulders, "And we'll make sure he gets a scare he never forgets!" he promises as he shakes her around, then lifting her in the air.

"Ahhh! Haha!" she beams in excitement as Jack carries her around the room like an airplane.

I gaze at him in awe. I've always admired this side of him, the side that's so good with children. It's amazing how he can make any child so cheery so fast. Even me sometimes.

The day I woke up with a prosthetic limb, he'd been right there when my eyes fluttered open, even Toothless.

"Well finally!" he had joked, "I thought you'd never wake up!"

I had ignored him though, because I immediately felt my missing foot. Misery completely washed over me as soon as I sat up and saw wood and metal replacing my own flesh and bones.

I had looked up at Toothless and him, completely overwhelmed, heart-broken, and eyes wide open at the very verge of breaking down into tears. Toothless stared at me, devastated of my own depression.

"Hey," Jack had softly called for my attention. I glared at him in all my rock-bottom dismay, and he stepped closer to hug me to his abdomen like I had done with Emma just now.

"It's gonna be alright," he had consoled me.

He and Toothless had held my hands and helped me take my first steps with my fake foot.

When Emma had been put down, Jack turned to me, "So what did you need?" he asked.

"Actually, I was just gonna tell you that i'm done with the boat designs," I explained.

"Why don't you two go hang out together?" Jack's mom proposes, "I'll take care of Emma. Besides, she can help me make pot roast before the ceremony."

Emma gasps, "Pot Roast!" she sings as she runs over to her mom to be carried.

She picks her up, "Just make sure you two come back early enough to eat." she advises us as Jack and I begin walking to the front door.

"Got it," Jack assures, "I'll see you later mom. Bye Emma," he waves as he opens the door.

"Bye Mrs. Palenstine, bye Emma!" I dismiss myself as well. And the door shuts behind us.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Jack and I stroll through the snowy woods with Aquilone by our side. I suggested we go to Berk Lake for another session in dragon training. I'm practically Jack's personal, private trainer.

I made sure I brought a small basket of fish, which i'm carrying right now. I would've brought a bigger basket but during this time of the year my dad puts them in the fishermen boats.

As for Toothless, he's still not back. I have no idea where he is or where he could be and I haven't seen him around. I'm not too worried though, I know he'll come back at some point. But I guess, with time passing, I become a tad more anxious than the hour before.

Arriving at Berk Lake, Aquilone sits patiently and watches attentively as I set down the basket of fish. I call Jack over to come by my side.

As he does, I begin talking, "Okay Jack, do you think you can pet him again?"

"Yeah, easy," he confirms as he walks up to Aquilone and pets his head lightly, Aquilone purring as he does. His dragon licks his face in approval.

"Haha, whoa boy!" Jack wipes the saliva off his features.

"Okay, good, now give him a fish," I tell Jack.

Jack opens the little basket of fish, grabs one, and throws it into Aquilone's mouth. He quickly catches it and chews it enjoyably, rolling over in amusement.

Jack and I both laugh at this; Aquilone for some reason has a tendency to roll over whenever he's happy. It delights me; I know there's still a lot to this dragon's personality yet to discover.

I continue on with the next step, "Okay Jack, I want you to get nearer and scratch his favorite spot on his neck."

"Alright." he says as he walks closer to his dragon and reaches for the place right below his jaw.

"Grraawww" Aquilone groans as he turns over belly up and begins thumping his leg up and down like a dog.

When Jack stops, I don't even have to tell him. He immediately goes to the basket to get him another whole fish, which again Aquilone eats up while tossing over in turns.

"I'm gonna get a bit risky here," I warn Jack, and he looks over at me seriously, "I want you to try and mount his back. Just TRY," and he restlessly grins.

"Yes! Finally!" he jumps and then he begins running towards Aquilone's back.

"Whoa! Hey!" I extend my hand as reflex that obviously won't reach him. He stops in his tracks and looks over.

"I don't know what might happen, you got that? I can't assure you Aquilone will be happy with it, so be prepared for the consequences," I inform him. I feel the anxiety from Toothless build up over what might happen to Jack. I seriously don't know how Aquilone will react, all I can hope for is that he doesn't hurt Jack.

Slowly and carefully, Jack proceeds to climb Aquilone's back. Aquilone looks back at Jack questioningly, wondering what is about to happen.

The dragon's head snaps up as soon as Jack steps onto one of his scales. I cringe in sudden fear as Aquilone gives out a small, low growl.

"Jack, maybe you should-"

"Shh, it's okay boy" he interrupts me as he pets his dragon, trying to settle him down. Slowly he takes a second step up, still rubbing Aquilone's scales. His dragon momentarily subsides, quietly purring at Jack's tameful touch.

Persistent as he is, Jake takes a third step, dragon still pacified. And finally a fourth in which he finally mounts him, right behind his neck.

He glances over at me looking more than enthusiastic, like the face of a child who has just been granted three wishes. Oh no, he's gonna scream, he's gonna yell, he's gonna laugh, oh gosh no!

"Don't startle him!" I whisper harshly, hoping he heard my warning.

But being sucked into his own world, "I'm on, Hiccup!" he waves his hands hysterically, "Ha! I'm ACTUALLY on!"

At that point, Aquilone's back spikes shoot up.

Crap, crap, crap!

I run towards Aquilone, but he begins thrashing around violently.

"Ahhh!" I hear Jack screaming and catch glances of him trying to hold on tight.

"Jack! Hold on!" I yell as I run to the basket of fish and grab it, "Aquilone!" I yell again trying to catch the dragons attention by waving the basket around, "Come here boy!"

He comes to a forceful halt, causing Jack to slip off, and speeds towards me.

Scared for Jack's safety, I drop the basket at hand and sprint to try and catch him.

I run fast enough to push him to a slightly safer impact, my body acting like a cushion for his.

On impact, I feel my insides squish from the weight gravity curses upon my good deed of saving a life.

He instantaneously throws himself off, "Hiccup!" He kneels beside me waiting for something to happen.

I deeply cough a couple of times and have the sudden urge to puke, but I forcefully keep it in my system, "I'm okay" I breathe out through my coughs.

He hugs me tightly, making me feel even worse, "Thank god! You scared me for a moment there!"

"Jack" I suffocate, barely audible, "let go."

"Oh!" and he snaps away from me, "Sorry!" he apologizes, squeezing his hands and cringing his face.

I catch my breath for a moment and look over to where I had dropped the basket for fish.

Gone. Aquilone too. He must've flown off.

Jack follows my gaze, "Where's Aquilone?" I catch fear in his voice.

"Don't worry," I try to calm him, "he'll be back."

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Heading back to the village, it is snowing lightly. Which is good, Jack seems preoccupied with catching snowflakes than worried about his dragon. They instantly melt when they touch his warm skin.

I, on the other hand, am just making sure we're going the right direction. It may be an island but the woods are a pretty big part of it.

I feel my stomach growl and I can almost smell the warm pot roast Jack's mom has waiting for us at the house all ready to eat. Imagining warmth, I begin shivering and realize i'm cold myself. I hug my elbows together as an attempt to generate some heat.

"Are you gonna kiss Astrid tonight?" Jack suddenly asks, still catching snowflakes.

I practically spit out my words, "What! What do mean?"

"Well, legend has it that the couple who kisses on the first and last night of the ceremony will have a good year, relationship-wise that is," he stops catching snow and winks at me.

"So let me get this straight: This morning, you were complaining about how she was using me, and now you're trying to get me to be with her based on some myth?" I ask him unbelievably.

"Hey, I can't stop you can I?" he laughs, "if you can't beat them, join them." he smirks.

I slap my hand against my forehead, "Jack, you're really..." I sigh and glance at him, "you're really something."

He roughly slaps my back, causing me to jump, "Of course I am! I'm Jack!" he yells proudly. I laugh at his conceitedness.

I lightly push him to the side, "You're so full of yourself sometimes." I tease him with a smile.

"Haha, and what about you?" he elbows my arm playfully.

"What ABOUT me?" I ask, slightly confused.

"Hiccup please, there's been times when you come out of your way just to see me so you can show off your new inventions and drawings," he explains.

"That is not true!" I deny.

"It is so!" he argues.

"THAT is called sharing my ideas and creations!" I defend myself, pointing my finger at emphasis.

"THAT is called cockiness!" he argues once more, mocking my gesture of pointing on emphasis.

I was gonna rebuttal my argument but I realized it stopped snowing and we had come to stop before the top of a snow-covered hill. Jack and I roll down here during the summer.

Ah darn it! "Jack! Why didn't you tell me anything? We've been going the wrong way this whole time!"

I wait for his nagging but I hear utter silence. I turn around quickly and realize he's gone.

"Jack?" I call out, looking deep into the woods in front of me, "Jack!"

Terrified of his disappearance, I run into the woods again and frantically try to find him, "Jack!"

I look behind trees, above trees, in burrows, in logs, in bushes, behind rocks, but nothing. No sign of him.

"Shit!" I curse to myself, I begin speed walking towards the village when I feel a snowball hit my head.

I knew it was him now. I turn around and see him grinning, trying to hold back a laugh, "You should've seen you're face!" he jokes, pointing in my direction.

"Why you!" I grab a handful of snow from the ground and begin chasing him back towards the hill, "I'll get you for this Jack!" I shout as we run through the woods like deer. I hear him laughing at me a few feet away.

I begin aiming at him with my arm, keeping it in a steady position despite all my movements. Before I have a chance to fling it at him he swiftly picks up his own bundle of snow and throws it behind him, hitting my chest.

"Jack!" I yell in frustration and pull my arm back, about to throw the bunch of snow.

But Jack reaches the top of the hill and faces me, putting his arms out signaling me to stop running, "Wait!" he shouts. My eyes widen as I try to bring myself to a halt, dropping my white revenge onto the ground, but I was too close behind to brake myself.

Our foreheads clash against each other and Jack falls back, pulling me down with him. We roll down the hill so fast and the only stable feeling on my body is Jack's arms tightly secured around me and the ache on my forehead. We simultaneously stop rolling every five seconds or so, it's Jack shot at trying to make us stop rolling by pressing his feet into the snow. But the momentum on us is too strong of a force to stop.

We reach a bump at the bottom of the hill and fly to a spot close-at-hand. As soon as we've made fixed contact with the ground, I become aware of two things.

One, my head is still spinning from the fall.

Two, my lips feel much warmer than before.

I open my eyes to see Jack's face is point-contact with mine. Jack is also staring straight into me, stupefied. In shock, both of us don't move for a while. I don't see his eyes despite them being right in front of me. My mind is blank and unable to think straight. The only thing I can concentrate on is Jack's soft lips against mine.

There's a sudden jerk in my heart. I feel the lust of wanting to move my lips against his, a feeling so small calling out to me that as soon as I hear it, both of us pull away from each other as if we had been thinking the same thought.

"Uhh-"

"That was-"

"yeah-"

"Awkward-"

"I'm sorry!"

"No, I'm sorry"

"It won't happen ag-"

"Yeah, yeah I know-"

"But-"

"You know, let's just umm-"

"Head back to the village?"

"Yeah, we should just get out of here" I confirm.

**Wanna see what Jack's dragon looks like? You can literally just search up "Devilish Dervish dragon" on google. It's red and blue. You'll find it. **


	2. The First Night

**Important Note:**

**I have changed Jack's family name to Overland, because for some reason a lot of people on tumblr call him that. And i'm not conforming, but it seems like a good last name for him (much better than Palenstine i'd say). Who knows? Maybe it's his actual last name. So, yes, Jack's full name is Jack Overland.**

**Review Replies:**

_**yinyangirl13**_**, Yes, yes there's more. Thank you for following! **

_**linkgirlz**_**, It was supposed to be a funny moment. Yes! It worked! Glad it made you laugh!**

_**kie-chan214**_**, Why thank you! You can go ahead and read it now :D**

**The First Night**

Walking back to the village with Jack had never before felt so awkward. We had literally walked back a little more than an arm's length away from each other and we didn't dare to look at one another either, or even speak. Though I did expect Jack to distract us both from the situation by starting a snowball fight again, or at least blabbering on about some irrelevant subject, but I guess our kiss left him feeling too uncomfortable.

I feel weird thinking about it. It feels odd saying it that way.

Our kiss.

Jack's and my kiss.

The kiss Jack and I had.

Great, how in the world are we going to get over this? I mean, I already feel like I have to introduce him in some different manner: Oh hello there person i've never met before! I'm Hiccup, and this is my best friend Jack. We've known each other all our lives and there's nothing we don't know about one another. Oh, have I mentioned that we've kissed? Yep, that's right, lip to lip contact.

Oh boy.

But in fact, we didn't really actually kiss. All our lips did was touch...just interlock a little bit.

And i'm pretty sure neither of us wanted to do it anyway. We certainly wouldn't of have done it at our own will. We're both guys for crying out loud!

Either way, what a relief that no one saw that, that's for sure. I don't need Jack and I to feel any more out of place than we already are.

This little incident deprived him of his garrulous mouth, true, but I can't live with him being silent all the time, we have to break the ice somehow. But I guess I'm going to have to fix this later.

At the village center, rows of logs were circularly fixed around the bonfire for the whole tribe to have a place to sit. As volunteers scramble to fix any final preparations, Jack and I wander around to find a good seat.

We never got to eat pot roast, unfortunately. Jack's mom and Emma had already been out of the house when we arrived, Mrs. Overland left a note at the door:

Sorry boys, maybe tomorrow.

Our little detour to the hill took too much time away from our hands. All the front row seats had already been taken so we end up somewhere a little further back than the middle row of the logs.

As we sit down, I know Jack's worried about Aquilone again. I can see him glancing up to the sky and searching for his dragon through my peripheral vision.

"Hey," I mutter, tapping his arm after I do.

Jack instantly flinches away from me and cringes.

"Whoa, what did I do?" I ask, somewhat defensively, "I was just gonna tell you to not worry about him."

"Oh," he collects himself, "right. Umm. Sorry." he weakly apologizes.

I stare at him unbelievably.

Are you kidding me? He couldn't of have possibly thought I would've pulled a move, did he? For Thor's sake, he can't be serious. Does he honestly believe-!

I exhale deeply. Yup, this is definitely going to affect us for a very long time.

As much as I want to slap him silly right now, I change the subject instead, "You...you want us to go look for your mom and Emma?"

He shows no response to my question. He just remains seated there, blankly, not even gesturing that he heard me speak. And he freezes like that for longer than I expected. I blink at his silence. He looks like he's staring out into space.

"We'd probably lose our spot but I think Emma would really like being with you right now. She's never spent the ceremonies without you," I add on to my previous sentence.

And again he remains quiet. I see him tighten his grip on the log slightly and he faces a direction away from me. Hoping he'd see from the corner of his eye, I raise a brow at him, but he fails to even register my existence.

Oh my- Would he please grow up?, "If you don't wanna go look for her, i'll bring her here mys-"

"This is just the introduction Hiccup," he finally speaks in a quick stern tone, "I'll look for her afterwards."

I stare at him again, is he...angry with me?

Really? I understand why he wouldn't want to talk to me, but angry? Does a measly kiss makes him so stubborn that he won't bother to so much as stand up and glance around for his own sister? This is ridiculous!

So I gather my emotions up, "Listen," I snap and he turns to me in shock, fully attentive. I've also gotten the attention of a couple vikings around us, "If you don't want me to be here I'll gladly leave you alone, but don't be so hard-headed that you won't even try to be there for Emma," I scold him.

At first he's left speechless, he sits with his eyes in surprise and his lips slightly parted at my assertiveness. The air feels tense as well, many of the vikings are gawking at our small dilemma as if it were a soap opera. But Jack swiftly breaks back into reality, closing his lips and forming a scowl.

"Fine, i'll go look for her," he lowly growls and stands.

He begins exiting the row, "I'll go with you," I notify him as I stand up as well, "I think I know where-"

"No," he interjects in the same bellicose voice, stopping in his tracks and turning to me, "I'll go alone," he finishes. We both scowl as at each other for a second or two and he continues on his way.

Once he's gone I sit back down, exhaling and groaning as I do and smacking my hands on my face, slowly dragging them down to my mouth.

This is so stupid, all of it. If only we had stayed at his house with Emma, everything would've been swell. We would have eaten pot roast, we would've gotten front row seats, and we wouldn't of have kissed. Why is he even mad at me? What? Is this my fault now? Sweet Odin's ghost, I was fine with us being a bit awkward with each other but now he's gonna lash this out on me? Wonderful. Just grand.

Where is Toothless when I need him? I haven't seen him all day, where in the world could've he gone? I probably shouldn't of have built that new tail wing of his, since I made it especially for him to be able to fly on his own. But I wanted to give him a little freedom this winter. It's practically an early Christmas gift, and I guess he decided to take full advantage of it. But he wouldn't just run off for a whole day and not come back.

Had I hurt him?

No, that couldn't be possible. Yesterday he was just fine and we had a great day. We had had a training session with Aquilone and Jack again. I gave Toothless more fish than I usually would've. As a matter of fact, I gave him double! So food couldn't be the problem. I didn't neglect him either. I hardly ever ignore him, only during the busiest of days. He knew today was the ceremony, I told him it was, he wouldn't just leave out of nowhere.

He couldn't of have flown too far either. I'm pretty sure he'll be back by tomorrow.

But what if he doesn't come back at all? What if the Red death somehow resurrected and is out to get Toothless for revenge? What if Toothless was ganged up on by a bunch of dragons and is hurt somewhere on an island? Or even drowned in the sea! Oh Thor, what if he's dead right now!

I stop myself from thinking any further and deeply inhale.

It's alright Hiccup, Toothless is going to be just fine. You just have to chill.

Just chill.

Chill.

Oh gosh, it's cold.

I hug my hands to my elbows again to generate heat. It's not snowing, and the bonfire is up and alive, but since I'm somewhat in the middle row of the seating and I don't have my vest, i'm pretty chilly. And Jack is gone too, it makes a big difference not having his body warmth near. Not that the big vikings around me don't warm me up, but Jack still counts.

I should've grabbed my vest a long time ago, but after I gave the designs to my dad, I didn't expect to go off on an adventure into the woods with Jack, which turned out obviously worse than I imagined. Maybe I can still make it to the house, I can just run there, run to the top of the hill. Even though I can see that we have a couple of minutes left since everyone's nearly at ease, I think I can make it.

I can't be late because, being the chief's son and all, not being here while my dad is "welcoming" the winter spirit would be a great dishonor. But i'm gonna give it a try anyway.

"I'll be right back," I quickly inform one of the vikings beside me as I stand up from my seat, "Mind saving my spot? Jack's spot too."

"Sure lad, sure," he agrees, of course he can't deny me either, i'm Stoick's son after all.

I begin squeezing through the seated vikings, "Where are you going though Hiccup?" my neighboring viking asks a bit concerned.

"Don't worry," I keep walking as a raise my voice so that it reaches the viking, "I'll be back in a flash."

I turn around and begin sprinting to my house but nervousness instantly intrudes my stomach. I feel the vikings glare at me with fear and shock. Clearly they know of the dishonor thing, including the viking that was seated next to me. I can hear their thoughts already:

Where's Hiccup going?

Is he crazy!

Oh, he's gonna get it alright!

I suddenly feel like puking from all my anxiety.

Oh shut up, shut up, shut up.

I try to get these thoughts out of my head and keep running, setting my goal and head for home. But doubt takes from little to no time to fog my mind.

Maybe I should head back to my seat. Maybe Jack's so freaked out with the kiss and all that he'll go ahead and give my seat to someone else. Because most likely I won't make it back on time.

So I slow my pace from a sprint to a fast walk.

Ugh, but it's just so cold and I can't handle it anymore! Ceremony or no ceremony, I need to be warm!

But if I don't make it back on time...

I'm practically stripped of my opportunity to make up my mind because I bump straight into someone.

"Hiccup?" I hear her voice.

"Astrid!" I yap a bit too loud.

She giggles at my reaction, "Where are you headed to?" she asks, giving me a light punch on the shoulder.

I fumble to find my own words and try to play it cool, "Uh, well, you see, I don't feel like freezing to death out here so i'm-"

"Your cold?" she presumes and then suddenly grabs my hand. She begins pulling me over back to the crowd, "well come on, we can sit together," she flashes a smile at me.

"O-okay" I stutter and she continues dragging me.

Dammit, I'm leaving Jack alone. I guess he's going to have to sit by himself. Then again, he might be with Emma, and it could be a good thing. He probably does need some space...away from me.

Astrid ends up dragging me all the way to the front row where she had saved a spot for herself. The others on that same log gladly scooted over and made room for me as well. Obviously the whole village approves of Astrid's and my growing relationship and they won't do anything but try to push us closer, especially since my dad had announced once that he swore someday we'd be married. He was drunk that time, but a drunk man is an honest one I guess?

When we sit, Astrid crouches over to grab a nearby bag, I take this chance to glance around and look for Jack.

I squint my eyes and scan the mass of people behind me, locating my thin, brown haired best friend, the only viking in this village that wears some sort of poncho-cape his mother sewed him.

And then I spot him, along with Emma lifted up on his shoulders, walking over to that same spot we had been seated at before. At least he's not all by himself. It gives me an excuse if he turns out, even the slightest, angry with me. Which I doubt considering our current situation.

He'll be fine.

Before entering our row though, he sees that i'm gone. I see him turn around and glance all over the place, startled at my sudden disappearance. I watch him, it's pretty amusing seeing him fret over me like this. Emma seems scared too.

Then I feel our eyes meet but as soon as I think they do, I feel a warm coating over me. I turn my focus back to Astrid, who has brought out a blanket out of her bag and has wrapped it around both of us. She scoots closer to me.

"You still cold?" she asks sarcastically with a playful smirk.

"Haha," I mock laugh a little nervously, "No, thank you. I-"

"Welcome everyone!..." I hear my dad boom out from the center of the circle.

Where did he come from, I didn't even SEE him walk to his spot.

" ...to the 317th annual welcoming for the Winter Spirit, Jokul Frosti!" he finishes. A wave of cheers travels the crowd.

"As you know every year we-"

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Every year we celebrate the coming of winter and its seasonal made-up fairy, blah, blah, it's a great honor to be here, blah, blah. Mother of Thor, would it kill him to change the wording a bit? Does he really have to repeat the same exact speech verbatim every year? I find it shocking that people still attentively get through this, I mean, they know exactly what he's gonna say! It seems like every word comes as a surprise to them.

Or they could be just pretending to not upset him, especially since that burning bonfire behind him make him look only more intimidating.

Actually, now that I think about it, I know Snotlout has noticed the same-speech-every-year thing and when he found out, he told everyone: Fishlegs, Ruffnut, Tuffnut, Astrid, Jack and I. Fishlegs and the twins seemed surprised, it's as if they've never before in their lives bothered to take note of it. Of course Jack and I knew, and I had already told Astrid. But seriously, what is it with that speech? Do people really forget it after a year and not notice the same routine? Is there no sense of Deja-vu in viking's systems?

I swear, after this year's ceremony is over, i'm gonna make sure it isn't the same long, tedious announcement next year.

Oh look, and here comes the reason why I need to be present.

"I," my dad starts and then points to me, "along with my son Hiccup, have-"

Have planned out this year's celebration, yada, yada, yes dad, I know, because who else would organize all this but the chief and his son? Clearly no one.

Yes, THAT is exactly why I absolutely cannot miss this part of the party, because my father must be able to point at me and tell the whole world that, hey, I was part of creating this too, surprise surprise.

I unexpectedly feel Astrid lightly elbow my arm, so I turn to my head to her, "Yeah?" I whisper to not interrupt my dad, because Odin knows what he'll do to me.

"Are you alright?" she asks in a low voice as well, looking as if she's stifling a laugh, "you look kind of annoyed."

"Oh, you know, this intro is just getting old." I explain, she nods in agreement already knowing what I mean.

"Don't be so glum, it only lasts a short time anyway." she tries to lighten me up.

"Yeah, I know." I sigh out, "But this is always the part I really hate, the initial announcement. It's boring. There's nothing to do but sit here and-"

Astrid abruptly gives me a quick peck on the cheek, stopping me mid-sentence.

Well, I didn't see that coming, just like all the other countless times she's kissed me.

"You know that story that goes around about a couple kissing on the first and last night?" she asks me. I simply shake my head in agreement, automatically knowing what she was trying to do just now.

Does this mean that she wants to be in a relationship any time soon or-

"It's a nice little story isn't it? Too bad I can't actually kiss you." she balls her hand into a fist and brings it up to her mouth to perform a fake cough, "I have a little bit of a sore throat," she admits with a small smile, "but that's a good enough alternative right?"

"Actually, you know Astrid, I wouldn't mind getting sick at all. It's just a sore throat anyway," I let out.

Please Astrid, just please remove the feeling of Jack's lips off of me, I could really use that right now.

"Well, someone's a little desperate." she smirks and teases me with an eskimo kiss instead of an actual one.

I groan in annoyance, "I'm not, it's just-"

"And so let the celebration begin!" my dad bursts out in his loud voice to emphasize the beginning of another winter party as another wave of cheers travels the crowd.

The tribe begins to disperse to the entertainment stalls and bars surrounding the seating area. Music begins to play, some begin to dance, others begin to chat, and within seconds the fairy of winter fest comes to life.

Astrid takes her blanket back and stuffs it into her backpack once more. She takes my hand and stands up, prompting me to get up as well, "So, what do you wanna do first?"

"Get a kiss," I lowly murmur a barely audible sound.

"What was that?" she asks, her brow raised questionably.

"Nothing, nothing," I shake off and take a look at what's around me instead, "let's see..."

I catch Snotlout, the twins, and Fishlegs spot us and they begin heading over to where Astrid and I are.

"Well, here comes the whole gang," I inform her.

She glances over to the group and squints, "Hey," she says suspiciously, "where's Jack?" she asks, turning to me for an answer.

I become uneasy, "Ahh, about him," I stall before replying, eyeing away from her look several times, "Let's just say that we got into a little mishap."

"You guys had an argument?" she asks, a little more concerned now, "Why? What happened?"

"I don't really want to tell anyone Astrid, seriously. Let's just keep it at this: Both of us did something we didn't really mean to do. And it's just very awkward between us right now. I think Jack is mad at me but I don't really know why," I explain to her and then promptly grab both of her hands, "Just please don't tell anyone about me and Jack alright?" I beg.

"Umm, sure, that's fine Hiccup," she promises, "And hopefully you guys fix whatever it is that's going on," she tells me.

"Thanks Astrid, and yeah, I hope so too," I finish off our conversation and release her hands before the group finally arrives.

"Hey, you guys headed anywhere? Cause we should totally go to the fortune teller's hut, they have one this year! The elder is gonna tell everyone their future!" Fishlegs excitedly informs us and tries to jump in place.

"No way, you're always into all that superstitious stuff," Tuffnut tells Fishlegs.

"Yeah, we should sneak into the arena and mess around with the weapons instead," Ruffnut suggests, "Everyone's distracted anyway."

"I agree with the twins," Snotlout kicks in, "after all," he flexes his arms, "these biceps don't grow by themselves," he finishes and smirks straight at Astrid.

Of course, I'm not worried. I know Astrid wouldn't even bother with Snotlout, he's not much of a rival anyway. In fact, he's a big weenie deep down. What's there to panic about?

"Well I think we should do what we do every year," Astrid starts, "We should ditch the ceremony, race each other with our dragons, and come back before midnight in time for the fish."

Snotlout, still flexing, forms a dumbfounded face and quickly snaps back to play it cool, "Yeah, totally agree with Astrid. Why would any of you even bother to change the routine," he changes his plans to conform.

"Fine, fine, but tomorrow," Tuffnut smirks evilly, "it's weapon time."

"I call riding Belch this time!" Ruffnut shouts and runs towards where I presume her dragon might be.

"Hey no fair, you got a headstart!" Tuffnut runs after her.

"I put Hookfang on a leash for eating my dinner plate tonight, so I'll go untie him." Snotlout explains as he jogs towards his house, "I'll meet you guys at the cliff!" he yells from afar now.

Astrid and I glance at Fishlegs, who I think is still wanting to go to the fortune teller's hut, "Umm...I guess i'll go get Meatlug..." he takes defeat and slowly walks away.

I frown a bit. I don't know if he's actually playing depressed and innocent but, "Hey Fishlegs," I call out and he turns around, I catch a glimpse of hope in his eyes, "we can go to the hut afterwards, alright?" I assure him.

"YES!" he throws a punch into the air, "Thanks Hiccup! Thank you! Oh I could just kiss you right now but that would be incredibly disgusting but ohhh thank you thank you thank you!" he blurts out and runs off.

"Yeah! Ha, kissing! Yep, ha, very disgusting," I yell out and gradually quiet down to an unenthusiastic mumble.

Hah, speaking of kissing... He just had to say that didn't he? Yes, I think kissing Fishlegs would be incredibly disgusting.

"Disgusting huh? Funny, not too long ago you were willing to get sick for one," Astrid teases me.

I give her a lopsided grin, "Oh Astrid come on, a kiss with Fishlegs is different." And so is a kiss with Jack..

She just laughs and pushes off the subject, "Well, i'm gonna go wake up Stormfly, i'll see you at the cliff?"

"Hmmm, I won't be going with you guys. I'll just wait for all of you down here I suppose," I turn her down.

"What do you mean? You never miss a race, you always win!" she tries to convince me otherwise.

"It's not that I don't want to, it's just that I don't have Toothless. He left. You remember that new tail I made him not too long ago, don't you?" I ask. She nods as a response.

"Well I don't know, I guess he's really enjoying it because he hasn't been here since I woke up this morning," I explain as I rub the back of my head.

"Oh," Astrid processes what I just told her, "Well, you can ride Stormfly with me if you want," she offers, "She comes in second every time anyway," she adds, winking as she does.

I smile at her offer, "Thanks Astrid, but you go ahead. I'm gonna look around for Jack. We have some things to straighten out anyway."

She shrugs and nods, "Okay, but I'm coming in first this time," she playfully warns me and walks towards me. Then she places her hand on my shoulder and gives me a serious stare, "Good luck with Jack."

"Thanks Astrid," I smile her and smiles back. And just like that, she removes her hand off of my shoulder and heads away.

Alright, time to look for Jack.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

It's not a surprise that it's been an hour and I haven't spotted Jack absolutely anywhere. I've probably walked by the same dancing group of people at least ten times. I've checked the entertainment stalls, all of them. I checked the pub, I checked the area back where we were seated at, I even checked the bathrooms five times! Curse you Jack, making yourself so hard to find.

No doubt he's hiding from me on purpose. I had bumped into Emma and Mrs. Overland three times as well, and of course I asked them where Jack was. All of those times they gave me a different answer: he went to the bathroom, he went off to get a snack, he went to fetch something he dropped. They might've believed him, but I didn't. They're all lies.

I make my final search around the place and stop in front of the pub, where I can hear the boisterous, slurred voices of many drunken vikings behind two giant solid wood doors.

Agh, what's the point anymore? If i've been searching for him this long it's clear that he's not gonna let me find him. Fine then, let him be. There's plenty of days left in my life to see him anyway.

I look up at the gargantuan closed doors of the pub, examining the carved dragon designs in them.

I've only been in there a couple of times, times when I needed to tell my dad any important news, or when it became really late at night and he drank away his worries here instead of sleeping at home.

I step closer and grab the both metal door handles with a firm grip.

Everyone's racing at the cliff, Toothless is missing, and Jack's hiding from me. There's absolutely nothing to around this place. I guess a little visit here wouldn't hurt.

I forcefully pull on the handles, grunting here and there as I opened the heavy doors.

Thor Almighty, what kind of trees are these doors made up of? I feel like i'm dragging boulders!

Upon creaking the doors open, the smell of beer, sweat, and alcohol breath invade my nostrils.

Ahh yes, the manly smell of manliness, my dad always says. This scent is very familiar indeed.

The ambient of laughter and intoxication hushes when a viking seated at the bar shouts across the room, "Why, look there fellows! It's wee Hiccup!"

A rise of exaggerated, forced laughter comes about the room. The Vikings laugh like maniacs as they point at me or drop their beer to the floor.

What the?

The room momentarily halts their outbursts when the viking across the room yells again, "Come for a drink, ay Hiccup? Well I hate to break it to ya, but the pub doesn't serve yak milk!" he intensifies the last part.

And again, like some magic spell, the room becomes a big ruckus. And you'd think training a dragon would earn you some respect around here, but nooo. You're not a man until the whole village has seen you drink your consciousness away, something I've never done. Some vikings slam their beer mugs onto the tables while others resolve to banging on it with their hands continuously instead. A couple grab their bellies as if it were to fall off, and one viking I see curled up in the corner seems to be running out of air to even laugh.

Ohh, so he wants to play games, does he?

"You got some nerve," I shout over the laughter and continue once the voices have dimmed again, "to think that I, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, first dragon trainer of the Hairy Hooligan Tribe, can't handle a single cup of beer!"

"Oh really?" he sarcastically questions, "Then how about you drink three cups of beer!" he challenges.

"Three? Pathetic!," I spit out, "How about five!" I use my hand to represent the number.

"Alright, five!" he agrees, "or..." he starts off with a sinister grin forming on his face, "We'll have a beer drinking competition, you and me," he proposes, "man who drinks the most before passing out wins."

There's a sudden shift in the atmosphere at the end of his offer, made obvious by a unison gasp from the surrounding vikings. Faces morph from happy to shocked. There are murmurs and whispers around the room.

From what I can tell, this guy must be good for everyone to be so daunted. But I'm feeling too confident to care.

I scowl and smirk at once, "You're on."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Wood. My ceiling pooled in sunlight. That's the first thing I see when my vision comes into focus. And I stare at the sun rays for a while. There are little dust particles I can barely take note of, dancing and swirling in the light.

Then I hear a purr on my right side, and scaly texture rubbing against my hand. These characteristics, I can't miss them, I know it's...

"Toothless," I mutter, still staring at the sunshine above me.

Toothless purrs again and licks my hand. Then he sits up beside me, his features finally coming into view.

I blink and my eyes corner to take a glance at him. He stares at me attentively, head slightly tilted to the side, eyes wide and green, moving restlessly in place.

I blink again and yawn, rubbing my eyes after I do. Only to afterwards stare at the moving dust above me once more.

Wait...

Toothless...

he's...

My eyes shoot wide open and throw myself to my dragon at the sudden realization, "Toothless!"

I hug him tightly and he only purrs more and rubs himself against my chest, "Oh gods bud, where were you yesterday? I was worried sick!"

Toothless squirms out of my hold and I watch him as he crawls over to his stone bed, where a big red bag rests. The bag spans over the whole length of his resting area. A grin so wide spreads over his black-facial features, and he wags his thick tail in excitement.

I raise my brow in confusion, "What's this bud?" I ask him and I stand up to begin walking over to the bag. Once at the foot of his bed, I squat down and pet him before I realize there's an odd scent coming from the red cloth. I untie the knot at the opening of it and take a peek inside.

The first thing that plops out of the bag is a fish's head, "Huh?"

But I unravel the rest of it, only to find that it's a giant Yander Flow, only the best-tasting fish of the whole sea. I look at Toothless and the fish back and forth, chuckling to myself. Toothless tilts his head in confusion.

I remembered now, why Toothless had left.

Jack and I had been talking not too many days ago about the ceremony. It was after training and after I had given Toothless his new tail. We sat under tree with Aquilone and Toothless laying at our sides, conversing about the midnight fish-eating during the ceremonies.

"I mean, sure, It's nice that we all get together as a tribe and roast fish by a huge fire pit," Jack had said, "but the least the fisherman can do is catch fish with, oh I don't know, better taste quality?"

I gave him a sympathetic grin, "Jack, you know that the fisherman can't go too far out into ocean in one night, obviously they're going to catch much more common fish," I told him as I petted Toothless.

He lifted his index finger into mid-air, "Correction, they only catch one type of fish, and that's the puny Green Gil," he explained and then crossed his arms, "It hardly has any flavor at all, it tastes like unflavored chicken!," he pouted, "They should start fishing early in the morning, not right before a ceremony begins."

Briefly, I had taken my index finger and pointed to him, "They can't do that either," I smirked as I had corrected him, having stifled a laugh as he pouted more, "The ceremony finishes practically a little later than midnight. Why would anyone, fishermen included, want to wake up early the next day?"

His eyebrows knitted together, "Alright wise guy, i'm pretty sure you'll backfire any argument I put out there," he paused momentarily, still scowling, as I laughed at his frustration, only to smile warmly at me after, "But you know what fish i'd really like to eat?" he asks.

"Don't tell me," I say, my right hand returned to pet Toothless, "a Yander Flow."

"Oh Thor, yes!" he had thrown his arms into the air, and if prompting the sky to hug him, "A heavenly Yander Flow! What I would do to get my hands on one of those babies!"

"Actually, you're right, I won't fight that. A Yander Flow would be pretty nice," I had agreed simply.

"Not just pretty nice," he had put up his index finger again, "extremely delicious!"

I giggled a bit, "Yeah, extremely delicious," and I had directed my attention to Toothless for a moment, "What do you say bud?" I asked and he glanced up at me, "Would you like a Yander Flow too?" And he had purred and licked my hand.

That's it! That's the only way Toothless would've gone out of his way to get me one! No wonder he was missing for a whole day, Yander Flows swim miles away from Berk! But where did the bag come from? Oh who cares!

"Awww, come here bud!" I fling myself at him again and hug him tightly. He hugs he back with his stubby, short black arms and I open my eyes, only to have a good view of his tail.

Hey, what's this?

I lightly push him away without taking my eyes off of it, "Toothless, where's the tail I made you?"

I look at him and he bows his head as he whimpers and frowns, "What bud? You can tell me, I won't get mad," I assure him in a soft voice, petting him again.

He exhales sharply and heads over to my window, "Toothless?" I call out.

But he jumps out swiftly as soon as he's by the pane.

"Whoa, hey, Toothless!" I yell out as I run over to my window. My eyes automatically latch onto his traveling figure as he makes his way into the main village.

Looks like he expects me to follow him.

I turn around too quick and trip over my prosthetic foot, "Ow!" feeling an increasing pain on my right knee, I instinctively overlap my hands on it.

"Ahhh, fuck fuck fuck fuck!," I mutter as I rock my knee around on the floor. It's not until then that I begin feeling a strong throbbing pain coming from my head.

"Owwww!" I moan and move my hands to grab my temples instead. Oh right, I had been drinking yesterday hadn't I? Wonderful. My first hangover. Looks like my body is wide awake now.

What happened yesterday anyway? And now that I mention it, how did I even get to my room? I don't even know who won the damn competition, but I doubt it was me. I just took the challenge because I was so worked up about Jack and Toothless that I decided to do something stupid to flush the frustration out. Plus, that guy pissed me off! I feel like i'm never gonna get any permanent recognition around here. If anything, the tribe probably thinks i'm more of a nuisance now, I lost that bet for sure. Ugh, bad luck is always biting me in the behind.

I rub my temples slowly in a circular motion for a couple of minutes before I get up on my feet.

I gotta move quick or I won't find Toothless.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

My dad wasn't downstairs. But that's not a surprise, he's gone early every morning, he's probably somewhere in the hall.

As I barely begin to make my way into the main village, a fellow viking stops me in my tracks, standing proudly over me and giving me a firm smack on my shoulder, the impact traveling up to my head and making me wince a little.

"Congrats Hiccup!" he phrases me.

"Wha-what?" I lightly mutter, rubbing my temples again, but he immediately continues on to his business and doesn't catch my words. He walks by me and I turn, following him with my deeply confused eyes.

What was that all about?

I shrug it off and return to my previous task, glancing back around and scanning the area for Toothless.

But all I see in front of me are the guys from the pub, progressively surrounding me, I note the ecstaticness in all of their faces.

Various compliments I hear coming from the crowd, all directed towards me:

"Congratulations Hiccup!"

"I can't believe you managed to do that!"

"You the man, Hiccup!"

and a lot of others and can't make out over the gradual growth in commotion.

It comes to a point where I am enclosed in the center of a circle of strong men, they take turns giving me tight hugs and lifting me up like I was the newborn in town.

"Um, Yes, thank you," I stutter at every comment they throw at me, trying to be as kind as possible to everyone, despite me not knowing what this is all about.

They've gone mad. I haven't gotten this much attention since I woke up with a prosthetic foot.

"Ahh!" I yelp when a big, buff viking suddenly picks me up on his shoulders.

"Who knew you had it in you, ey Hiccup?" he shouts, his voice dominating over everyone else's.

"You beat Stump the Oblivious, who by the way has never been beat before, AND you managed not to pass out until midnight, just before the fish-eating!" he boasts, to which the crowd cheers loudly at, waving their fists in the air and rustling around.

Is he...is he talking about the drinking competition? Stump the Oblivious? Was that my opponent's name?

"Woooo boy! You were the life of the party yesterday!," the man carrying me continues, "You need to get drunk more often!"

"Wait," I stop the commotion, "so, you guys are telling me I won yesterday?" I asked with a hopeful smirk growing on my face.

He chuckles loudly at speaks to the crowd, "Poor boy ey?" he manages through his laugh and points at me, "he doesn't even remember!"

The whole crowd comes to life again in loud, booming laughter, just like last night.

Odin! I-I can't believe it! I won? Hah! I actually won!

I pump my fists onto the air repeatedly into the air, "I won!" I shout at the top of my lungs, ignoring the strong ringing in my ears formed by my aching head.

The vikings powerfully cheer in approval. Lost in the epiphany only momentarily, I briskly bring myself back into reality.

Toothless! I've got no time for this, I have to find Toothless!

I transition to a nervous, shy laugh while the crowd begins to tame itself, "Well thanks guys," I say shakily, squirming in the viking's firm hold, putting me down after he catches my vibe "but I really have to get going now."

The vikings mumble what I sense to be an approval so they make way and I continue onto my task, turning swiftly to ask, "Umm, by any chance have any of you seen Toothless anywhere?"

"Oh, your giant lizard?" one of the vikings shouts, "I saw 'em heading over to Gobber's forge, lad!"

"Thank you!" I shout, continuing to ignore the throbbing against my skull, and begin running to the workshop.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

I enter through the old doorway and my eyes catch sight of Gobber and Toothless, both of them pulling on an object in the opposing direction, ripping it in two.

Toothless spots me and bows his head in fear again, whimpering. Gobber faces me as well and jumps a little at the sight of me, "H-Hiccup!" he gets on his feet promptly and dusts himself off, lifting his hands in defense, "Listen Hiccup, I know this looks bad," I lift my brow and walk towards the object lying on the floor as he speaks, "But I swear it's nothin' we can't fix," and I finally get a good view of the tail I had made Toothless to fly on his own, leather cloth tattered and metal broken and bent.

I pick it up, examining it some more and gliding my hands over my ruined invention, my face in a blank expression while Gobber and Toothless' faces I see from the corner of my eyes are as anxious as ever, "True, it's something I can easily fix," I tell Gobber, "but the real question here," and look over at him, "is why this happened," I finish with a lopsided grin.

He's clearly shocked to see that I didn't turn into a raging mess, partly because my head is forbidding it right now, and he shakes back into composure as I walk over to Toothless, contraption still in one hand, and pet him lightly over his scaly head, trying to comfort him again as I did not too long ago.

"You see lad, yesterday morning Jack told me Toothless went missing!" Gobber begins to explain as he paces back and forth, the sound of Jack's name reminding me of our situation, "And the first thing I thought was oh that Hiccup, I told him an automatic tail for Toothless was a bad idea, but kids these days, they never listen! But-!" he pauses briefly, applying emphasis before he continues, "I found him! After the ceremony finished, Toothless landed not too far from the forge, and I ran straight for his tail and took it right off with my only hand!" he proudly declares with a smug grin as he rests his hand and hook on his hips, "Ohh, but he was a rough one, he was," he points at Toothless several times, Toothless gives him a very low, quiet, growl, "and he had a red bag too, but he wouldn't let me have it! He ran straight to your house and I let him go from there, I figured you'd know what to do with him," he finally finishes and he sighs, "but sorry for the tail lad, he came runnin' into the forge wanting to take it back, and well.." he gestures to the broken invention, "this happened."

I take a moment to register the whole explanation, Jack's name still sticking out in my mind, nodding and approving of what was just told to me, but only one thing still doesn't seem to make sense, "Wait, so, you didn't give him the red bag?"

"No boy, he already had that thing tightly gripped in his teeth," mimicking Toothless's grasp by biting into his own hook, "I couldn't grab it! Did he give it to you?" he asks.

"Yeah, he did," I answer, "Don't ask what it is, you'll see later," I add quickly, "and Thanks, thanks for getting a hold of Toothless," I finish as I pat my dragon on his back. Hmm, I wonder where the bag came from..

He shrugs, "Alright, I won't ask. And no problem lad. I guess i'll be seein' you around? I've got work to do," he tells me as he walks over to a bucket and begins pulling out scraps of metals and giant pliers, setting it on a desk beside him.

"Yeah, see you later Gobber," I dismiss myself and signal Toothless to walk with me towards the door, pausing momentarily before pushing on the handle, Toothless takes a glance up at me for suddenly halting.

My mind finds itself back to Jack and I and our kiss. Back to wondering why Jack is mad at me. Back to feeling his lips still lingering over mine. I remember Fishlegs telling me he'd kiss me but how utterly disgusting it would be, and I don't disagree with him. But when I think about the kiss Jack and I had..

It was disgusting, wasn't it? _Right?_ Of course it was, why wouldn't it be? He's a guy and two guys kissing is just...unacceptable, and...weird, and...disgusting.

I rub my temples again, half of the reason being the hangover and the over half being frustration. Toothless looks at me with concerned eyes, and I return his gaze, but my thoughts remain fogged with Jack.

Or maybe I just _want_ to believe it was disgusting. Honestly, I just thought it was an awkward moment. I didn't really feel the urge to spit out, or to push him away, or anything bad. I just felt reluctant to talk to him afterwards, but I certainly wasn't comfortable with it either.

Does Jack feel the same way? He probably found it more disgusting than me. I mean, I feel like he's angry with me. And he was avoiding me yesterday as well. I don't know if that's his way of showing awkwardness or he's just really annoyed with my face.

I just want to get rid of this whole situation. I wanna get this feeling off of my lips. I want us to go back to normal and joke around like we did before rolling down that hill yesterday. Usually he stops by my house every morning simply to greet me, but i'm pretty sure this time he made sure to stay 50 feet away.

I sigh a tired breath and pet Toothless once more, "Hey Gobber," I call out, still looking at Toothless, "How do you get rid of a feeling?"

"A feelin', you say?" he answers, still working on who knows what, "that depends on what type of feelin'."

I shift around uncomfortably, frowning a little bit. Obviously i'm not gonna tell him I kissed Jack. Toothless tugs on my shirt with his teeth, beginning to worry more, "It's okay bud, it's okay" I quietly whisper until he lets go.

"Well, let's say I did something I didn't like," I cautiously start out and pause, watching his actions.

"Mhmm? and?" he prompts me to continue as he works.

"And...I can't get rid of the feeling of it. I keep thinking about it and I want it out of my system," I finish and await his answer.

"What? Like bein' the drunk mess you were yesterday?" he blurts out.

"W-what!" I raise my voice in shock, again ignoring the ringing it caused my ears, Toothless flinches at my voice, and I walk over to his spot, "How did you know about that!" I ask loudly standing beside him.

"Well, your father wasn't too happy about carrying you back home, in fact, he had to get Jack to carry you upstairs. Stoick would come tumbling down with you altogether on that weak, frail staircase! Heheheh!" he finishes off with a laugh.

Jack carried me up to my room? So then, he isn't completely mad at me...or most likely he was forced to do it.

"But all in all, he was proud that his own son beat Stump the Oblivious, the tribe drinkin'-champion," he finally faced me, "You broke his record Hiccup, 50 cups of beer and you were still up and runnin' for another 3 hours! Ha! Miracle!" and he turned back to his work.

"Yeah, but I've got a massive headache for that," I practically groan out and rub my head with a little more force this time, rubbing my face afterwards as well.

"Recognition comes with a price, boy," he tells me, "You should go home and take it easy today."

"Yeah, you're right" I sigh out.

But not before I see Jack.

I head for the door again, "Come on, Toothless" I call out to him and finally get a grip on the door handle, opening it and letting Toothless out first. And Gobber calls out to me again before I step out.

"And about the feeling thing," he says, making me turn to him, "If something's really botherin' you all that bad, do it again."

"Do-d-d-da-do it _again_?" I spit and stutter out, "What do you mean do it _again_?" I fling my hands questionably in mid-air.

Kiss Jack again? That's ludacris!

He turns his body to face me, and by the look on his face, he isn't messing with my head.

Shit.

"I know it sounds crazy lad, but sometimes you have to do things repeatedly to get used to them. Eventually it won't bother you and you'll get so bored with the feeling, you'll stop doing it," he explains and immediately gets back to work, "now good bye, this is gonna take me all day," he waves me off.

My eyes are nearly bulging in fright out of their sockets. I put my right hand on my chest and breath out a long exhale before I forget how breathing even works. And with that, I finally motion out of the forge, closing the door behind me.

Toothless tugs at my shirt again, signaling me towards home.

So, getting used to kissing Jack until I feel nothing. Sure, sounds like a great plan if i'm trying to deprive us both of our friendship! And sure, Astrid and I aren't dating, but if she ever found out about this, she wouldn't dare to look at me anymore! And I doubt Jack would even talk to me if we had a second kiss! Should I even take this advice into consideration?

I shake my head and rub away some pain again, motioning Toothless to move in a different direction, "We're going to Jack's first, bud." I notify him. He seems to grin and walks right ahead of me. Getting a good view of this tail, I realize that i'm gonna have to pull out his old tail part and use that instead for a while, but i'll do that when I get home.

I have to fix this little mishap between me and Jack today, advice or no advice. I'm not gonna sit around and wait for him to come to me.

I take a step forward and head over to Jack's house.

**I hope it wasn't too long or tedious, and I'm practically less than thirty minutes away from my deadline right now. I could've edited it some more, but time was not on my side. **


End file.
